Yes, Sanrio is the king (queen?) of collabs – but who do the fans want them to team up with next? Sanrio is asking the fans directly in their latest character poll, starting from May 10th and running until June 11th. The candidates feature all your faves from Sanrio and a host of cameo candidates, from the super-popular to the charmingly niche.

Let’s look at our contenders, shall we?

▼ Left to right: How to Keep a Mummy, Panpaka Pants, Koeda-chan, Suzy’s Zoo

Nyanko from mobile game Battle Cats wields a Gudetama in their collab, though Meliodas from hit manga/anime The Seven Deadly Sins just ended up with egg on his face. Kitty appears in her stylish Splatoon 2 studs with her lady inkling pal, or The Little Twin Stars can join forces with anime voice actor Aoi Shouta.

Kitty just keeps up the cameos: Catty-chan, a mascot from pet retailer Doggyman; Milky mascot Peko-chan, who always has her tongue poking out; and Shuri-kun, the handyman dalmatian from e-smile. Pom Pom Purin courts another famous puppy for friendship: internet star Maru.

▼ Pixy-kun, Kakuo and Joe O’ Silk, Koguma, Kumashacho

Rion’s kid-targeted mascot Pixy-kun really lucks out by scoring both Kitty and Purin in his collaboration! Pom Pom Purin has royal mascot buddies Kokuo and Joe O’ Silk from the Kokumin drug store. Kitty shows off her dancing with Bunmeido Castella’s Koguma troupe, or if you’d rather she just stick to one bear there’s Kumagai Gumi’s Kumashacho.

▼ Misakigyu, Bunbun, Kitappy, Kawasaki Norfin, Milhee

If you’re a Kobe beef otaku, you can vote for Kitty’s alliance with Miyasakigyu. Fans of bees (and newspapers?) can opt for Oita Godo Shimbun’s Bunbun. I like to think all of Kyushu will vote for her combo with Fukuoka’s funny little bus mascot, Kitappy… But maybe the people of Kawasaki will win out by voting their own bus mascot, Kawasaki Norfin. Sadly, I don’t think the people of Nasushiobara City have much of a chance at winning, even if their cow mascot Milhee is cute as a creampuff.

Okay, but now that you’ve seen the competition…It’s gotta be Splatoon 2, right?!

The winner of the collaboration contest gets to be celebrated in Sanrio’s own cute Tokyo character theme park, Puroland. When they’re not running zombie specials or reading gay erotica, Puroland is dedicated to providing the bubbliest character-packed experience in Japan. Whoever wins the poll will get that sparkly special treatment in their very own event!

▼ Just imagine how fun this aesthetic would be in an actual theme park.

I for one definitely want to see Puroland splattered in neon paint and blasting the latest in unintelligible ocean jams. If you’re a contrarian and would rather ensure Kitappy’s Puroland Bus Extravaganza, make sure to check the site when it goes live on May 10 and vote, vote, vote!

Oh, and while you’re waiting, you can always vote in the regular old character popularity poll here.

Leave a Reply

Trackbacks

[…] last reminder: if you enjoy Kitty collaborations, don’t forget to vote in the annual Sanrio Character Collaboration poll! Umimaru won’t make it into this year’s, but maybe next year his ship will […]

[…] most famous mascot Hello Kitty, always has a lot on her plate. Between extinguishing ghosts and boosting company sales, she never has an idle moment. Her latest mission is breaking into the competitive world of virtual […]